The GOP After Specter

The GOP After Specter talks about how the GOP is starting to worry about the health of their party. Republicans are deeply concerned about this switch because the Democrats pretty much now have a filibuster-proof majority.

Module 13: Party Switheroo

When Senator Arlen Specter announced he would be “switching” parties last week, a lot of us probably weren’t too interested. This announcement, however, has rocked the political boat in Washington, DC. In a recent statement, Specter announced, "I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans." Some wonder if this was true, or whether his whole switcheroo was some sort of political strategy for his own benefit. I think this recent party switch says that politicians are only in it to win it. Specter became a Democrat because he believed that he could not win the upcoming primary in his own party, as a Republican. Specter says he spent all his life as a Republican and in the end, the Republicans abandoned him. Is this really what happened? On the one hand, the GOP has fell under harsh criticism lately for their breakdown, so perhaps Specter really did feel that the GOP had “abandoned him.” On the other, I think this is a classic example of a politician only looking out for himself. He wanted to switch parties so he could remain in office. He knew he couldn’t win against his competitor, Pat Toomey in the upcoming 2010 election so he pulled this stunt purely for personal reasons. I am sure a lot of Pennsylvanians are angry that their Senator has turned out to be a turncoat on them. No one likes a politician who switches sides (like McCain – we all know that his Democrat¬-ish ideologies on some issues turned a lot of people off). Basically, this switch says to me that the party system in the United States caters to the politician, and not the people. With Specter on the “other side” now, the GOP is going to find it almost impossible to get their way in Congress. Their margins were already pretty thin, and now with Specter becoming a Democrat, they’ve lost even more. Fiorina argues that Americans are not polarized, but politicians sometimes are. Congress is more polarized that the average American citizen and I think we see this here with Specter. He has stated over and over the he feels the Republican party does not align with his ideologies anymore and that he’s more attracted to the Democrats. The bottom line is, according to Fiorina, politicians are seeking votes and Congress especially shows clear indications of increased polarization in recent decades. I think Specter’s switch makes sense because, in politics, it’s all about approval ratings. Specter even said, "The most important number was the approval rating - it dropped from the 60s to 31." I think a lot of politicians are concerned about this these days. Many are not concerned about the constituents they represent, rather they are more concerned about their own personal image in ratings. It’s clear Specter only pulled this move so he could have a chance at winning in 2010.